Every year I eagerly sit down with my hot off the presses IKEA catalog and begin marking the pages all the items on my wish list with colorful sticky flags. But this year I got impatient waiting for the 2016 catalog to hit my mailbox, so I decide to start my browsing with the digital version instead. And even now that my paper catalog has arrived, I'm pretty hooked on the online version!
When I watch tv and movies, I sometimes have a hard time focusing on the show because I'm so busy noticing the details of the interior designs. Just ask my husband - I drive him crazy making him pause and rewind so I can check out the shelf styling, or so I can tell him where each item in scene came from because I recognize it from all of my catalog surfing.
And the same goes for the IKEA catalog - as much as I love seeing all the IKEA new products, I spend even more time pouring over the architecture and space planning details of the nearly 200 pages of fully-styled rooms! So today I thought I'd share with you some the interior design inspiration that I've drawn from the 2016 catalog, as well a few of the special features of the digital catalog that make it a design lovers best friend!
The digital catalog has some cool moving pictures - like steam rising from a pot on the stove (pg. 10), and pages turning in a book (pg. 82). Elements like that make it extra fun to browse online, but it's other special features of the digital catalog that make it even more practical! But it wasn't until about the my third time through the online version of the catalog that I noticed some of the best features, so before we talk design inspiration, let me first point out a few tricks.
When you tap on the "share" button near the top right corner of the screen...
...it opens up a list of images that you can choose from - including copies of the catalog pages both with and without the text overlays. That means that for the design inspiration images I'm going to share with you today, I was able to select images with no text, which makes it easier to see every last detail. It also means that with just one click, you can pin the text free images to your Pinterest boards where you'll be able to quickly find and reference them again!
Some of the pages, like the the kitchen on pages 38 and 39, also allow you to select and image of the exact same kitchen layout (without the people or accessories) in numerous color combinations. As you can see below, these kitchen cabinets are available in dark brown, grey, white and light brown. This allows you to see exactly what the kitchen looks like with each different cabinet color, and lets you pin or share the color option that you like best!
Pretty cool, huh?! I was impressed! But I will tell you that I couldn't get these features to work in Google Chrome - it would bring up the image options, but then the screen would freeze before I was able to share or pin the pictures. As soon as I switched over to Internet Explorer, everything worked just fine. I didn't try it in any other browsers, but save the frustration and skip on Chrome for this catalog.
Ok, so those are the logistics of the catalog. Now let's finally get to the pretty pictures, shall we?! Each photo below links directly to that page of the catalog.
KITCHEN INSPIRATION
Kitchens make up the first section of the catalog, and there are some gorgeous designs and fun new products. There were a few photos in particular that caught my eye...
Kelly green is definitely a hot color this year, and I love the pops of it in this kitchen, which perfectly compliment all of the live greenery. But it's the lights in this kitchen that really make me swoon! I love that they are hung at different heights, and the two different shapes of LED light bulbs make a big visual impact!
There are so many practical details to love in this next kitchen! It's common to see bar stool seating along one side of a kitchen island, but I big fan of this more unique configuration - with a bench seat along the back of the island. I often hear people say the wish they had room for an island, but that their kitchen is just too small. This layout allows the kitchen table to be placed much closer to the island (with the bench providing table seating), making it possible to fit both and island and a decent sized table even in a kitchen with limited square footage!
Other details of this kitchen that I love are the built in cookbook shelves on the side of the island, the storage below the built-in bench, and the extra tall upper cabinets that reach all the way to the ceiling!
When I cook, I wind up with things spread over ever inch of the kitchen counters! If you are short on counter space to start with, it can be challenging to keep your work surface clear. That's why I think the design of this next kitchen is so ingenious! Check out those open spaces on either side of the stove for tucking rolling carts in where cabinets would otherwise be. The beauty of these carts is that they still provide storage, but can also be rolled out during food prep, allowing you quick access to your items while you cook, without covering your counter tops and cluttering your work space.
The detail I like in this next kitchen is just a small one, but one that I will likely implement in my own home. I love that towel bar at the end of the cabinet! We typically hang dish towels over the handle of our oven, but a towel right at the end of the cabinet down by our fridge would be very convenient for cleaning up spills from the water dispenser and from ice that hits the floor when the kids try to get their own drinks. And of course, how can I not mention the floor tile in this kitchen - it's pretty darn gorgeous!
I am a fan of the industrial style - but I like it best in a limited quantity, and that's exactly what appeals to me about this kitchen. The white, glass front cabinets and the shelf styling are quite traditional and understated, which makes that wall covered in kitchen tools hanging from hooks such an unexpected focal point with an industrial flair! This wall could appear messy and overwhelming if not executed properly, but against that black, chalkboard wall backdrop, the items largely blend together - giving it a cohesive feel. And the addition of the down light gives this display the importance of a piece of art.
This last kitchen also has a feature wall with hanging kitchen utensils, but with a completely different feel than the one above. Where the prior kitchen has a wide variety of sizes and shapes of utensils hanging from large, industrial S hooks, the utensils hanging in the kitchen below have a much more orderly feel to them. Here, it's a large, busy pattern on the wall that helps the utensils blend in and feel like an intentional, artistic part of the overall kitchen design.
There were also a couple of new kitchen products that really caught my eye, and that will definitely be on my shopping list, including these
SITTNING Serving Spoons {only $15 for a set of 5}...
...and the coordinating SITTNING Trivets {only $10 for 3}. I love the modern, industrial style!
DARK WALL INSPIRATION
I've always been a fan of dark colored walls, and I have quite few charcoal painted walls throughout my home. But I've recently been thinking about painting a room dark blue, and I was thrilled to see several moody blue-gray rooms in the 2016 IKEA Catalog.
This is probably my favorite room in the entire catalog!
I love mixing blues and grays, but the camel colored couch in this room really adds warmth to the space! I am a also big fan of gallery walls surrounding televisions, but the cubical shelves in this room serve the same purpose in an unexpected way. My favorite detail of this space, though, are the two matching wing back chairs in different colors! I'm not sure I would have thought to mix the chairs this way, but it makes the room feel much more sophisticated!
This blue gray bathroom also has my heart! The white tile on the bottom half of the walls helps to balance the dark paint and dark tone of the wood. I also love that collection of framed black and white photos hung with street-light styled wall sconce. I am now searching my house for a place to install those lights!
GALLERY WALL INSPIRATION
Some may say that the gallery wall trend is over done, but I think it's timeless. How can you go wrong surrounding yourself with collections of your favorite photos and art?! Gallery walls also help to solve one of the most common design mistakes - hanging art that's too small in scale. Grouping multiple pieces together can help to appropriately fill the space!
There are some great gallery wall examples in the catalog, including this one {which also happens to be in a room with gorgeous blue walls}. I've always appreciated the sophisticated look of a gallery wall with all black frames, white mats, and black and white photos - but this gallery wall mixes in a couple of white frames, and it really makes it pop!
High ceilings can pose a decorating challenge, but the gallery display above the door in this white office is a perfect solution to fill that space!
Here's one more example of a gallery wall that goes all the way to the ceiling, including above a doorway. However, unlike the room above, this kitchen doesn't have particularly high ceilings, but, in this space, the framed pictures help to draw you eye up, making the room feel taller. I also like the gold colored paint on the inside of the door frame, which adds a little pop of color to the monochromatic kitchen, and creates a nice transition to the next room.
AND A LITTLE MORE INSPIRATION...
I'll wrap up this post with a few more things that inspired me in 2016 IKEA catalog.
How fantastic are these
TJUSIG coat hangers?! Best of all, they can be combined together to create rows of different heights.
I have gray in every room of my home, and I'm always looking for a cozy blanket to curl up with, so this beauty caught my eye! How pretty is that scalloped edge?!
Have you noticed what a hot color kelly green is right now?! If you are loving the green trend as much as I am, then you're in luck, because the new IKEA catalog is full of fun green pieces!
And lastly, since you know how much I love to organize, I can't end this post without showing you some of my favorite new 2016 IKEA organizing products!
Happy catalog browsing! I'd love to hear which photos most inspire you, and which new products you are crushing on!
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Labels: inspiration, interior design, shopping
